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Digitalisation of TIR Procedures, CMR Modernisation and the Silk Road Revival as the Push for the Development of the Industry

6-7 March 2018 IRU Delegation composed by Secretary
General Mr. Umberto de Pretto, Manager TIR Digitalization Mr. Raphael Hirt, Head
of TIR Department of TOBB and President of BSEC-URTA Ms. Aslı Gözütok, General
Delegate and Secretary General of BSEC-URTA Mr. Adrian Albu held meetings in
Ankara with His Excellency Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and
Communications of Republic of Turkey Ahmet Arslan and His Excellency Minister of Customs
and Trade of Republic of Turkey Bülent Tüfenkçi.

Meeting with HE Ahmet ARSLAN - Minister of
Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications

·Freedom of transit and free of permits in bilateral
road transport in the BSEC region. (The Timetable for implementation of
objectives under the BSEC MoU on Facilitation of Road Transport of Goods has as
deadline for liberalization of transit transport between BSEC Member States the
date of 1 January 2019 and for liberalization of bilateral transport the date
of 1 January 2020.)

·Further development of the BSEC Permit System
started in 2010. (Strongly supported that time by Turkey: as of today has 8
participating BSEC Member States (Albania, Armenia, Georgia, Moldova, Romania,
Serbia, Turkey and Ukraine), is good for bilateral and transit transport along
a round trip and has as validity 1 year. Support for shifting from 1 trip usage
to multiple trips and expansion towards east by targeting joining to the system
of Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan.

DIGITALISATION OF TRANSPORT

veCMR (national /
bilateral pilot projects)(eCMR: Additional Protocol to
the Convention on the Contract for the International Carriage of Goods by Road
(CMR) concerning the Electronic Consignment Note. Geneva, 27 May 2008. Entry
into force: 5 June 2011)

·eCMR Protocol signed by Turkey and some neighbours
from the region such as: Iran, Bulgaria (in pipeline Greece, FYROM, Ukraine,
Romania, Russia, Moldova)

·good news of last week about a decision of MoT of
Turkey and MoT of Spain to start a eCMR Pilot Project

·eCMR Pilot Project on national level could be also
an option (Greece is doing it)

·eCMR along a Balkan route and/or eCMR in the Black Sea region-could be
options of Pilot Projects for Turkey in which could have a leading role

oInterest by Turkish operators, enabled to modernize procedures. Allowed technical progress for the
benefit of trade and Customs:

-print@home,

-distance payment,

-real time data availability

ofacilitated signature
of new IRU and UNECE MoU in Oct 17, and the financing by IRU of UNECE
activities in the field of TIR digitalisation

·eTIR
along Intermodal trade corridors

oEU-Asia, from Ukraine to
Kazakhstan and China through Georgia-Azerbaijan,

oIslamabad-Tehran-Istanbul,
and North-South corridors through Iran to Pakistan and India,

omiddle East: Oman,
Qatar, soon Saudi Arabia

·Real progress can
be reached only with Turkey

WORLD CONGRESS

vParticipation of Minister in the IRU World Congress in
Muscat, Oman during 6-8 November 2018

CONCLUSIONS BY MINISTER:

§Modernisation
and expansion of TIR and CMR is key for the sake of further facilitation of trade
along important intermodal corridors in the region including India, Pakistan,
the entire Middle East, and very importantly, the Silk Road to China.

§It
is important to continue building upon the last major achievements, such as the
eTIR pilot project between Iran and Turkey, and the recent accession to the
eCMR Convention by Turkey, to further expand these digital tools for the
benefits of international trade.

§Gradual
liberalization of the road transport market in Europe targeting the freedom of
transit and freedom of permits in bilateral road transport is a prerequisite
for the efficient movement of goods traded by Turkey with its neighbours and
other partners from EU, Middle East and Asia.There is a positive approach of Turkey in this regard within the
bilateral negotiations and not only but on multilateral level, too such as in
the development of the BSEC and TRACECA Permit systems.

§ Cooperation of Ministry and IRU for digitalisation of transport documents is a key factor for
facilitation of Trade and Transport.

§IRU
and Ministry to work jointly to have modern, facilitated intermodal trade
corridors linking the EU, Asia and Gulf States.

§Readiness
to participate in the IRU World Congress in Muscat, Oman during 6-8 November
2018.

Meeting
with HE Bülent Tüfenkçi, Minister of Customs and Trade of Republic of Turkey

The Minister was
constructive and well briefed, followed the agenda, and responded favourably to
IRU-TOBB’s main demand: to get support for further TIR digitalisation

Requests raised by IRU and TOBB:

-Insisted on request to empower Didem Dirlik
to voice Turkish interests in TIR at UNECE towards protectionist positions
expressed by EU and Russian Federation. Soon there will be support from new
countries (China, Pakistan, India,..)

-IRU to continue be able to select National
Associations

-To move electronically in the frame of the 5 years
MoU with UNECE, as interim legal framework

oto have an intermodal corridor with Ukraine

oto extend this corridor to Georgia,
Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and ultimately to China

Coordination Meeting between Institutions Represented in Specialized Groups in 2018 Black Sea Economic Cooperation Calendar was held on 22 February 2018 in Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Ankara, Turkey.